Expert Says Banks Will Never Touch XRP If This Development Does not Materialize

A crypto researcher has argued that U.S. banks may remain averse to XRP usage unless the U.S. regulator openly declares XRP as non-security.

In a recent exchange on social media platform X, digital asset researcher Anderson argued a requisite condition that must be in place for U.S. financial institutions to adopt XRP.

The context of the conversation surrounded speculation on whether the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) lawsuit against Ripple prevented significant development progress for the XRP Ledger (XRPL).

Attorney Bill Morgan initiated the discourse by asking why crucial developments such as automated market makers failed to surface on XRPL years before the SEC contested XRP’s status as a security.

SEC Needs to Declare XRP like ETH

Though Morgan’s question was directed to another XRP enthusiast, crypto-focused researcher Anderson weighed in to share his perspective. He expressed that Ripple likely desired the SEC to publicly proclaim that XRP is not a security, similar to the declaration made for Ethereum (ETH).

Based on this premise, Anderson argued that U.S. banks may never consider adopting XRP without such clarification. He emphasized that banks and large financial institutions represent where the bulk of the money resides.

I believe Ripple wanted SEC to publicly state that XRP is not a security, like they did with ETH. Without any such clarification banks would never touch XRP. Banks and large financial institutions is where all the money is.

There are things Bob Way said as well, hinting that…

— Anders 🏁🌏 (@X__Anderson) February 13, 2024

Significantly, the U.S. court has already ruled that XRP is not a security, and the SEC has taken no action to contest this decision. Many online commentators had anticipated that this judgment could pave the way for XRP adoption in the financial sector. 

However, recent statements from Ripple executives suggest otherwise. In an interview, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse revealed that U.S. banking institutions remain hesitant to adopt cryptocurrencies like XRP. He cited the hostile regulatory landscape in the United States.

Likewise, in another interview, when questioned about whether the court ruling had triggered an uptick in the adoption of XRP, Ripple President Monica Long failed to provide a definitive answer.

XRP Development Pre-lawsuit

Concerning XRP development progress pre-lawsuit, Anderson suggested there were likely deliberate decisions on timing within the XRPL ecosystem.

Specifically, he mentioned insights from Bob Way, a member of the xSPECTAR team, an NFT project on XRPL. He indicated that they were cautious not to give competitors an advantage, hence planning to release when the time was right.